"Why are there in this world more women than men?"
"Because they are more necessary."
"That's your conceit; but you're wrong."
"What is it, then?" asked the young girl.
"Because the evil in this world is always greater than the good."
"So," said she, with a pretty smile, "then, women ought to be called men's worse halves."
"Of course, they ought—though there are exceptions to all rules." Then, after drinking very slowly half a glass of wine: "Now, one for you, babica. This is the very best of the lot; I didn't invent it myself, though I, too, can say a smart thing now and then, babica. Tell me, when is a wife seen at her best?"
Ivanka's mother, who prided herself upon her youthful looks, winced visibly on hearing herself twice called a granny; still, she added, simpering:
"I suppose, when she's a bride."
"Oh! you suppose that, do you? Well, your supposition is all wrong."